Rebirth of a Farmer's Dad

The next morning, the matchmaker brought the girl. Instead of going directly to Luo Feng's house, they first inquired around the village. They needed to ascertain the man's character; otherwise, how could the girl feel at ease? After all, this was a matter of great importance to the girl's future!

"Young lady, let me ask you something. What do you think of that young man named Luo Feng in your village?" The girl was hesitant to ask, but the matchmaker had no such reservations. As soon as she entered the village, she began asking around.

"You mean Fengzi? He's a nice guy, a good person. If your uncle ever needs anything, just say the word to him, and he'll help." It seems this person is someone Luo Feng has helped before.

"Young lady, are you telling the truth? You're not trying to fool us," the matchmaker pressed.

"Look at what you're saying. Why would I lie to you for no reason? Everyone in the village knows that this young man is a really good guy. If you have any trouble, just ask him, and he'll definitely help. If you don't believe me, go ask around." The woman being questioned spoke with a hint of anger in her voice. It's true, nobody wants to be doubted.

"Young lady, don't be angry with me. This is my daughter's wedding! It's a major life event for my daughter, so I have to ask a few more questions and get to the bottom of things before I feel at ease." Most matchmakers are shrewd; seeing the displeasure on the other woman's face, they quickly stepped forward to explain. Matchmakers can't afford to offend anyone, or they won't be able to survive in the surrounding villages.

"Oh, so that's what happened. I was wondering why you were asking about Fengzi for no reason. The young lady is quite pretty. Don't worry, you'll definitely enjoy life after marrying him. You won't suffer if you follow Fengzi." The auntie suddenly realized and glanced at the girl following behind the matchmaker.

“It seems you all think highly of him. Tell me, is there anything else we don’t know?” the matchmaker quickly stepped forward and said.

"I'm not bragging, but back in the day, there was a hoodlum in the village named Luo Erhu, you've all heard of him, right?" The aunt said, looking at the matchmaker.

"We know this young man is quite influential; everyone in the surrounding area knows him. But speaking of which, he hasn't shown up for quite some time." Matchmakers are very well-informed; they know exactly what's going on in the surrounding villages.

"Tiger's really something now. I heard from Lao Shuan's wife in our village that Tiger's now running a shop in the county with Luo Feng, and business is booming," the auntie said with a smile. After all, Luo Feng and Tiger are from the village, and their success benefits everyone.

"Young lady, are you saying Luo Feng also has shops in the county?" The matchmaker immediately seized on the key point.

"Yes, I heard it's quite big," the auntie replied.

"Then how did he end up hanging out with Luo Erhu?" the girl asked timidly, clearly still harboring some prejudice against Luo Erhu.

"Once, Tiger went to someone's village to cause trouble and got detained. It was Feng who gave him two hundred yuan to save him. After that, the two became best friends, and Tiger, under Feng's guidance, reformed and started to walk the right path." The aunt began to recount the story of Luo Feng saving Tiger.

"What? Two hundred or two hundred yuan? He paid for it all by himself?" The matchmaker was somewhat incredulous, after all, two hundred yuan was not a small amount these days.

“That’s right, you all know Tiger. That guy is a complete scoundrel, and nobody in the village is willing to help him,” the auntie said.

"How about it, girl? I didn't lie to you, did I? You'll be living a life of luxury once you marry him." The matchmaker said to the girl behind her with a delighted expression after hearing the aunt's words.

"Auntie, what are you saying?" The girl seemed a little shy, stamping her feet and looking uncomfortable.

"Alright, I know this is your first time getting married. But everyone has to get through this, right? Let's go, let's go see the groom's family, so they don't keep us waiting." With that, the matchmaker took the girl's hand and walked towards Luo Feng's house.

The girl was a little embarrassed, but since she was already there, there was no reason for her to go back. She let the matchmaker lead her towards Luo Feng's house.

"Fengzi, come out and greet us! I've brought you a girl!" The matchmaker shouted into the courtyard as soon as they arrived at Luo Feng's house.

Luo Feng felt incredibly awkward. It was as if a madam was calling girls out to entertain customers. Were people really this open-minded these days?

Despite his awkwardness, the girl had already arrived, and it wouldn't be right for him not to go out. Luo Feng casually straightened his clothes and appeared in the courtyard.

"Look at this young man, how energetic he is! Your auntie wasn't lying to you, was she?" The matchmaker immediately said to the girl as soon as Luo Feng came out.

The girl glanced at Luo Feng shyly but didn't say anything. She seemed a little embarrassed.

"Fengzi, let me introduce you. This is the girl I told you about, Wu Muxiu. What do you think? Does she look alright?" the matchmaker said to Luo Feng, winking at him as she finished speaking.

Luo Feng had no experience with this kind of thing, after all, he was an orphan in his later life and didn't even have a girlfriend. Therefore, Luo Feng was quite embarrassed at this moment, and didn't even know where to put his hands.

"Everyone says you're a clever young man, how come you're so clueless? The girl's here, and you just let the two of us stand in the yard to talk?" Perhaps to ease the awkwardness, the matchmaker kindly reminded Luo Feng.

"Yes, yes, come in and sit down. Look at my memory, I shouldn't have done that." Luo Feng suddenly realized and quickly invited the two of them into the house.

"Please have a seat, I'll go pour you some tea." With that, Luo Feng turned and went to make tea.

While Luo Feng was making tea, the two began to examine the furnishings of the house. All the furniture had been bought by Luo Feng when the house was being built, and it had only been about six months since then; it was practically brand new. The two were naturally very satisfied with this. It seemed the man's family was quite well-off!

"How about it? This young man may be a bit dull, but he's a really good person. If you marry him, you won't have to worry about the rest of your life." The matchmaker looked around the room and then began a new round of persuasion.

"How can this be decided so quickly? I haven't even figured out what kind of person he is yet." Faced with such a major life decision, even the most inexperienced girl would hesitate.

“You’re right, Auntie is too hasty. Here’s what we’ll do: you two talk first, and if you like it, have your mother come with you in a couple of days. The family can discuss the details with him.” Seeing this, the matchmaker had no choice but to compromise and settle for second best.

Before the girls could even speak, Luo Feng brought over two cups of tea. He placed the brewed tea in front of them, bowed slightly, and gestured for them to drink. Then, as if to make sure they didn't understand, he said, "The tea is ready. Please have a taste. If you need any snacks, I can get them. Please forgive me if there's anything I haven't done well."

"Haha, you're quite the smooth talker, young man. Alright, old woman, I won't disturb your conversation any longer. I have something to attend to, so I'll be going now." The matchmaker said, turning and leaving before the two could react.

"Something's up? What could it be?" Luo Luofeng guessed the matchmaker was probably waiting outside the courtyard. "I don't know how matchmakers are these days," she thought, "they just bring girls and boys together and then they're done with it." She then slipped aside, leaving the two strangers awkwardly waiting. "If that's how it is," she thought, "wouldn't being a matchmaker be too easy?"

Although I have many complaints about the matchmaker's practices, there are some things that can only be understood but not spoken of, otherwise it would be too easy to offend people.

Facing a complete stranger, Luo Feng really didn't know what to say. But he knew very well that in these situations, the man usually had to speak first. The girl was shy and embarrassed.

Then Luo Feng took the lead in the conversation. He felt incredibly uncomfortable; this wasn't a conversation, it was more like a police interrogation of a criminal. He'd say a sentence, and the girl would reply with a single sentence. She wouldn't say a word more than necessary, as if her words were worth a fortune.

Two complete strangers naturally had nothing in common, and their first meeting ended abruptly. Although Luo Feng admitted he was a good conversationalist, that was only with his close male friends. They were all men, after all, and could chat about anything and everything, even cracking a few dirty jokes. But with a girl, especially a complete stranger, he really didn't know what to say.

Luo Feng had never felt time pass so slowly; perhaps the conversation was just too boring. Before he knew it, it was almost lunchtime, and Luo Feng decided to invite her to stay for a meal at his house. Besides, he needed to go find Xinghua. Ever since returning to the village, the girl had been constantly out playing, never home. She even had to go to other people's houses to get meals. He wondered when she had become so wild.

Fortunately, my daughter was out playing and not at home. Otherwise, she would have thrown a huge tantrum if she saw this scene.

The girl, still shy, declined Luo Feng's invitation to stay for dinner. She must know he has a daughter. She probably didn't want to stay to avoid awkwardness. Besides, having dinner at the man's house on their first meeting was a bit improper. Although Luo Feng didn't care about certain rural customs, as a native of the countryside, the girl valued this very much.

The girl eventually left without even having lunch. Luo Feng was somewhat troubled. He had clearly intended to find an excuse to turn the girl away, but he had gotten so engrossed in their conversation that he had completely forgotten about it. If he didn't make it clear the first time, it would be even harder to refuse her in the future.

"Never mind, next time I'll just tell her that I'm not thinking about getting married right now," Luo Feng muttered to himself. He knew that in these situations, a short, sharp pain was better than a long, drawn-out one; cutting the Gordian knot was the best approach.